Brevity in Nominal Sentences — The Power of Constancy Over Occurrence
balagha
Level: advanced
ijaz
blg-047
وَٱللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيۡءٍ عَلِيمٌ
— البقرة 282
The key distinction:
The verbal sentence denotes occurrence and renewal — "Zayd rises" means: he rises repeatedly. The nominal sentence denotes constancy and permanence — "Zayd is standing" means: this is his established quality.
Quranic example: "And Allah is All-Knowing of all things." (Surah 2:282)
The beauty:
If "ya'lamu Allahu kull shay'" were said, it would indicate the action at a given time. "'Alim" is a noun — it signals that knowledge is an inherent, inseparable attribute, not something that occurs then ceases. The nominal sentence here establishes divine knowledge as permanent and absolute. Al-Jurjani: "The noun in the chapter of attributes conveys rootedness and permanence that the verb cannot."
Source: Al-Jurjani, Dala'il Al-I'jaz (p.180); Al-Zarkashi (3/170); Al-Maydani (2/14)
Question: Why did the Quran say "Alimun" (noun) instead of "ya'lamu" (verb) in this context?
Answer: The noun conveys permanence and constancy — His knowledge is an inseparable inherent attribute. The verb conveys occurrence and renewal and cannot yield the same meaning.